2024-11-15 20:44

Nov 15 (Reuters) - Compass Minerals (CMP.N) , opens new tab is in talks with private-equity firms to sell itself, three sources familiar with the matter said, after an aborted lithium-mining project hit shares of the minerals producer, which is worth about $1.5 billion including debt. Overland Park, Kansas-based Compass has been working with its investment bankers for several weeks to evaluate acquisition interest from several buyout firms, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the discussions are confidential. The talks are advanced and a deal could be signed in the coming weeks, the sources said. But they warned a deal was not certain. The company's shares jumped more than 30% on Friday after Reuters reported its talks with potential suitors. A spokesperson for the company declined to comment. Compass produces salt for the transportation and food industries, as well as fire retardants and fertilizers. Compass became an acquisition target after its shares lost more than half their value this year up to Thursday's close. The company shut down its lithium unit, which used to produce electric-vehicle battery metal for automakers such as Ford Motor (F.N) , opens new tab, disappointing investors. Earlier this year, Compass canceled plans to develop a large lithium project in Utah after facing intense opposition from regulators, who argued it would have a detrimental environmental impact on the Great Salt Lake. Mild weather has also hurt its mineral salts business in its most recent quarterly results. In May, the company said it would reduce its debt pile and not pay out dividends to free up cash. For the quarter ended June 30, Compass' revenue fell slightly to $203 million, while it swung to a net loss of $43.6 million. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/compass-minerals-attracts-takeover-interest-buyout-firms-sources-say-2024-11-15/

2024-11-15 20:24

Financial documents disclose rapid growth in revenue and profit Risks include lawsuits by big-name customers BP, Shell and Edison Estimated costs for building three new US LNG export facilities to top $100 bln NEW YORK/HOUSTON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Venture Global LNG, which has rocketed into the top ranks of U.S. natural gas exporters, earned $4.85 billion in its second year of operations, according to financial documents prepared for its initial public offering of shares. Founded 11 years ago by an energy lawyer and investment banker, the company has quickly become a major exporter of liquefied natural gas, competing against larger rivals Cheniere Energy (LNG.N) , opens new tab, Freeport LNG and Sempra (SRE.N) , opens new tab. Venture Global LNG is expected to announce on Friday its plans for a stock market listing in New York, according to a source familiar with the matter. A spokesperson for the Arlington, Virginia-based firm did not have immediate comment. The documents show Venture Global had operating income of $4.85 billion on revenue of $7.9 billion last year. This compares with operating profits of $3.56 billion on sales of $6.45 billion in 2022. Estimated costs for building three new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities in the United States were revealed for the first time to top $100 billion, the documents show. Venture Global LNG has one operating plant in Louisiana and another expected to soon start producing LNG. The projected volumes from the two plants could next year rank it as the second largest U.S. exporter of the superchilled gas. The company, which has a controversial history with four contract arbitration cases with customers, has on the drawing board enough future volumes that if completed could make it one of the three largest LNG producers in the world by 2030. The Venture Global share offering could find significant interest from institutional investors, said analysts. The Virginia based company will become one of just a handful of options in the U.S. to invest in a pure LNG play. A big draw for investors could be the "strategic advantages the sector may experience with the incoming Trump administration," said Alex Munton director of global gas and LNG research at consulting firm Rapidan Energy Group. But the company is embroiled in contract disputes including BP (BP.L) , opens new tab, Shell (SHEL.L) , opens new tab, Edison (EDNn.MI) , opens new tab and Orlen (PKN.WA) , opens new tab that could cost it hundreds of million of dollars. If it loses the cases, the "amounts required to pay may be substantial ... and lead to the acceleration of all our debt for the relevant project," Venture Global warned. Investors will weigh the potential loses because they could be significant, said Jason Feer, Poten and Partners Global head of business intelligence. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/venture-global-lng-earned-485-billion-operations-2023-document-shows-2024-11-15/

2024-11-15 19:53

NEW YORK, Nov 15 (Reuters) - A lawsuit accusing Elon Musk of rigging dogecoin is ending. Investors in the cryptocurrency who said the world's richest person and his electric car company Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab committed fraud and insider trading are withdrawing their appeal from an Aug. 29 dismissal of their case. They are also withdrawing a bid to sanction Musk's lawyers for allegedly interfering with the appeal, including by demanding payment of their hefty legal fees. Musk and Tesla, meanwhile, withdrew their motion to sanction the investors' lawyer for allegedly pursuing a "frivolous" case with ever-changing legal theories to "extort a quick handout." A stipulation dismissing the appeal and both sides' motions was filed on Thursday night in federal court in Manhattan. It requires approval by U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein. Lawyers for the investors and Musk did not immediately respond on Friday to requests for comment. Investors accused Musk of using Twitter posts, an appearance on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" and other stunts to trade dogecoin at their expense, including by timing trades to Musk's public statements and activities. In the Aug. 29 dismissal, Hellerstein said reasonable investors could not prove securities fraud from relying on Musk's tweets, including that dogecoin was the future currency of Earth and could be flown to the moon by his company SpaceX. The judge also said he did not understand the investors' related market manipulation and insider trading claims. Investors originally sought $258 billion, and amended their complaint four times in two years. Musk bought Twitter in 2022 and rebranded it X. On Tuesday, President-elect Donald Trump picked Musk and biotechnology company founder Vivek Ramaswany to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, whose acronym echoes dogecoin's name. The case is Gorog et al v. Musk et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 22-05037. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/legal/lawsuit-claiming-elon-musk-rigged-dogecoin-ends-2024-11-15/

2024-11-15 19:32

Ukraine gas transit due to expire at end of year Kyiv has said no plans to renew or extend transit contract Austria says 'no home will go cold' LONDON/VIENNA, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Russia told Austria on Friday it will suspend gas deliveries via Ukraine on Saturday, in a development that signals a fast-approaching end of Moscow's last gas flows to Europe. Russia's oldest gas-export route to Europe, a pipeline dating back to Soviet days via Ukraine, is set to shut at the end of this year. Ukraine has said it will not extend the transit agreement with Russian state-owned Gazprom (GAZP.MM) , opens new tab in order to deprive Russia of profits that Kyiv says help to finance the war against it. Moscow's suspension of gas for Austria, the main receiver of gas via Ukraine, means Russia will now only supply significant gas volumes to Hungary and Slovakia, in Hungary's case via a pipeline running mostly through Turkey. In contrast, Russia met 40% of the European Union's gas needs before Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said Gazprom's notice of ending supplies was long expected and Austria has made preparations. "No home will go cold ... gas-storage facilities are sufficiently full," he told reporters. Gazprom declined to comment. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, writing on X, said Russia's action showed it "once again uses energy as a weapon". But Austria, he said, would find a way to ensure energy security and "reject blackmail". "The era of Europe relying on Russian gas is over," he said. Time to fully cut Russian energy profits -- and war funding." OMV (OMVV.VI) , opens new tab, Austria's biggest energy supplier, said it has been preparing for the eventual cut-off of Russian gas and can deliver gas to its customers by importing via Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. Austria's gas imports from Russia will end following a contractual dispute between Gazprom and OMV. In a notice published on the central European gas hub platform, OMV said Gazprom told it supply would stop on Saturday. EUROPEAN COUNTRIES ADAPT Gazprom's move may fan concerns in Austria about heating through the winter and served as Moscow's rebuke to its political class since the Russia-friendly Freedom Party was cut out of coalition talks after winning Austria's election in September, said Ulrich Schmid, a professor of Eastern European studies at the University of St. Gallen. European and global gas prices spiked following a drop in Russian pipeline supplies in 2022 but some European countries found alternative sources, including liquefied natural gas from the United States. The U.S. has become the world's top gas producer and is expected to expand production. Austria was one of the first western European countries to buy Russian gas when the Soviet Union signed a gas contract in 1968, months before the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. Germany was also heavily reliant on Russian gas before the war, but shipments ceased when the Nord Stream pipelines under the Baltic Sea were blown up in 2022. Russia's notice of ending gas supplies to Austria came as Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany held their first phone conversation since December 2022. Russia was ready to look at energy deals if Berlin was interested, the Kremlin said. "It was emphasized that Russia has always strictly fulfilled its treaty and contractual obligations in the energy sector and is ready for mutually beneficial cooperation if the German side shows interest in this," the Kremlin said. Russia shipped some 15 billion cubic metres of gas via Ukraine in 2023, about 8% of peak Russian gas flows to Europe via various routes in 2018-2019, according to data compiled by Reuters. In 2023, the Ukraine transit route met 65% of gas demand in Austria and its eastern neighbours Hungary and Slovakia, according to the International Energy Agency. Ukraine has said it doesn't plan to extend the transit agreement into 2025. Hungary no longer receives much gas via Ukraine and imports volumes via the TurkStream pipeline that runs along the bed of the Black Sea. Slovakia still receives Russian gas via Ukraine. Gazprom's move showed Russia flexing its muscles at the West as pressure builds for a ceasefire in Ukraine, said Schmid at the University of St. Gallen. Russia likely felt emboldened after Donald Trump won the U.S. presidency this month pledging to quickly end the Ukraine war, he added. EU energy commissioner Kadri Simson told Reuters on the sidelines of a UN climate conference in Azerbaijan that all EU countries receiving gas via the Ukraine route have access to other supply sources that could fill the gap. "We have been very clear that alternative supply is available and there is no need for the continuation of Russian gas transiting via Ukraine to Europe," Simson said. The European benchmark price for gas edged down 0.63 euro to 45.72 euros per megawatt hour at the trading close. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/austrias-omv-informed-by-gazprom-that-deliveries-be-reduced-0-says-platform-2024-11-15/

2024-11-15 18:45

Nov 15 (Reuters) - Uranium prices gained on Friday after Russia imposed temporary restrictions on the export of enriched uranium to the United States. The move by Russia, the world's largest supplier of enriched uranium, was a symbolic tit-for-tat move after the U.S. banned Russian uranium imports, adding that companies authorized by the export control watchdog can still export uranium to the U.S. Bids for uranium for November 2025 delivery jumped $4 to $84 a pound after the news, market research firm and consultancy UxC said. "Many sellers have backed away from making offers at the moment as they assess the impact," Jonathan Hinze, president of UxC, told Reuters. The weekly spot price of uranium slipped $1 to $77 a pound as of Nov. 11 from the previous week, down from about $90 in May, according to UxC. Shares of uranium miners also jumped after the news. Russia holds about 44% of the world's uranium enrichment capacity and about 35% of U.S. nuclear fuel imports used to come from Russia, according to the U.S. office of nuclear energy. "$100 per pound is very achievable intermediately on the spot market ... it's inelastic demand," said John Ciampaglia, CEO of Sprott Asset Management, which manages a large physical uranium fund. While securing supply is paramount, the enrichment and conversion elements of the fuel cycle are more constrained, he added. British-Dutch-German firm Urenco runs the only commercial uranium enrichment facility in the U.S. out of New Mexico and announced plans to expand it last year. In September, French nuclear fuel specialist Orano said it could begin enriching uranium at a new plant in the U.S. in the early 2030s. Broadly, consensus stands that Russian imports into the U.S. would continue with limited interruption through 2027 due to the previous waivers granted by the U.S. Department of Energy, with Russia expected to continue exports, RBC analysts said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/uranium-prices-jump-after-russia-restricts-exports-us-2024-11-15/

2024-11-15 18:38

Worst floods in decades left more than 200 dead, 16 missing Regional leader admits failures, asks for forgiveness Mazon says he did what he could with information he had Opposition parties call for Mazon's resignation VALENCIA, Nov 15 (Reuters) - The leader of Spain's Valencia region defended his handling of catastrophic floods that killed more than 200 people, saying on Friday he did everything possible in the face of a "monstrous avalanche of water that exceeded all weather forecasts". Addressing regional lawmakers, Carlos Mazon rejected calls to resign, although he said he would not evade responsibility and sought forgiveness over last month's disaster. "I am not going to deny failures, it is not possible to do so, nor would it be useful," Mazon, of the conservative People's Party, said. Stricken local residents have been fiercely critical, primarily of local authorities but also of the national government, over their level of preparedness and for failing to sufficiently warn people about the risks of the Oct. 29 storm and its resulting floods. Mazon repeated an assertion that he has previously made that the body responsible for measuring water flows, run by the national government, failed to send sufficient warnings. He promised a public inquiry at the regional assembly into the national and regional governments' handling of the disaster. "The best possible effort was made given the situation, with the information available and the resources at hand, although it is evident that it was not enough," Mazon said. 'POLITICAL COWARDICE' Science Minister Diana Morant, who is leader of the Socialist party in Valencia, described Mazon's speech as an "act of political cowardice and disrespect". She said the People's Party should dismiss Mazon and call new regional elections once the emergency subsides. Dozens of citizens gathered outside the regional assembly, demanding his resignation and chanting "neither forgetting nor forgiving" and "you were eating while others were dying", referring to a lengthy lunch that Mazon had with a local reporter on the day of the disaster. Mazon said he did not cancel his agenda that day because the regional official in charge of the emergency services was handling the situation, adding he did not delay any decisions and was kept up to speed throughout the day. Residents of Paiporta, one of the suburbs of Valencia affected by the floods, vented their anger against Mazon, the king and queen of Spain and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez during their visit on Nov. 4. Residents have been critical over what they see as tardy alerts from the authorities about the dangers of the flooding, and then a late response by the emergency services when disaster struck. "How many of these deaths were avoidable?" said Joan Baldovi, a lawmaker from the far-left Compromis party. He called for Mazon to step down, describing him as "negligent". Of those who died in Valencia and nearby towns and villages, 190 were Spaniards while 26 were citizens from 11 countries, official data showed on Thursday. Almost half of the dead were people aged 70 years or older. Emergency workers are still looking for 16 missing people. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/spanish-regional-leader-defends-his-handling-valencia-floods-2024-11-15/